Leonardo da Vinci The Renaissance Man

An ideal of the Renaissance was a person who could do all things well, from painting a picture to designing a cannon. The person who came closest to reaching this ideal of the multi-talented “Renaissance man” was the Italian artist and scientist Leonardo da Vinci.
Leonardo da Vinci had the traits of genius. He became bored easily and often left work unfinished. He hated deadlines and schedules. He was a perfectionist who was never satisfied. Yet Leonardo triumphed over his faults and left the world masterpieces of his art. His notebooks offer a glimpse into the mind of a scientist centuries ahead of his time. Leonardo’s life and work show extraordinary range of human creativity. He was the spirit of the Renaissance in a single person.
Leonardo was born on April 15, 1452, near the Italian village of Vinci. As a child, he had an intense curiosity about nature and loved to explore the nearby fields and woods. He hungered for knowledge. His father sent him to school, but Leonardo did not want to learn from just books. He wanted to see the world with his own eyes, and he expressed what he saw through art.
When Leonardo was about 15, his father took him to Florence. At the time, artists packed the city, where they were supported by wealthy men who were patrons of the arts. In this way, artists were free to express themselves – and earn a living through painting, sculpting and other arts. In Florence, Leonardo became an apprentice to Andrea del Verrocchio. Verrocchio was a sculptor who also painted. Immediately, Leonardo outshone his fellow students. He even proved himself more talented than his master. Awed by one of Leonardo’s angels, Verrocchio was said to have never lifted a paintbrush again.
During Leonardo’s youth, the Renaissance spirit was reaching its height in Italy. Leonardo felt free to apply himself to almost anything. He also wanted to try everything. He discovered that he was not just an artist. He was also a scientist. He believed that science and art should work together to create a realistic picture of the world. Leonardo also began to draw plans for new mechanical devices. He was becoming an engineer as well.
He set up his own workshop in 1477. After a few years, he became bored with his work and wanted to try something new. In a long letter to the Duke of Milan, Leonardo bragged about his ability to invent weapons. Although he hated war, he knew cities of his time needed defenses against invaders. He had already created plans for weapons including explosive shells, a steam-powered cannon and even tanks.
In 1482, he was accepted into the duke’s court as an engineer, but also worked as a painter. In the dining hall of a monastery in Milan, he painted one of his masterpieces, The Last Supper. He designed massive guns and fortresses as well as city canals. He devised a new method for casting bronze, which is still I use today. As usual, Leonardo left dozens of projects unfinished, but even those reveal flashes of brilliance.

During his time in Milan, Leonardo began to keep detailed notebooks filled with drawings and text. They show his interest and great insights on a variety of subjects, one of which was flight. He had been observing patterns of air currents and how birds fly. These studies led to designs for flying machines, including helicopters and gliders. Nearly 450 years would pass before inventors designed and successfully tested similar flying machines.
After the Duke of Milan fell from power in 1499, Leonardo traveled around Italy, taking jobs to paint pictures. One of his assignments was a portrait of a woman with a mysterious smile. Some say she was Lisa, the wife of a merchant. This painting is known today as Mona Lisa. It shows his ability to use the human face to reveal a person’s character.
Da Vinci marveled at the way the human body worked. To learn more about anatomy, he dissected corpses. His drawings show the appearance and functions of organs and systems. They are considered the first accurate pictures of human anatomy.
In his later years, Leonardo’s engineering skills were still in demand. For a time, he traveled with the captain of the papal army, Cesare Borgia, as a military designer. Leonardo was also commissioned to design a bridge that would span the great harbor of Constantinople. Modern architects have analyzed his design and say that, if the bridge had been built, it would have supported even today’s traffic.
Leonard Da Vinci’s last patron was Francis I, king of France. The king viewed him as the wisest of men. He gave Leonardo a cottage to work in and let him do as he pleased. By this time, Leonardo was suffering with paralysis in his right hand, but he continued to paint and teach. When the artist-inventor died in 1519, he was already being spoken of as the “Divine Leonardo”.